I Killed the Hero and Took His Achievements-Chapter 34: Crusade of Pain

[Location: The Border of Zimara - The Sand Terrain]

[Event: The Holy Crusade Advance]

The desert horizon was filled with silver color. Not from sand but from armor.

One hundred thousand Paladins of the Church of Light marched in perfect unison. Their shields reflected the sun, creating a blinding wall of reflection light. Leading them was a massive, floating cathedral. The Ark of Sanctity.

Walking in front that lead the entire army, barefoot and shirtless, was Kenji. He looked different from before. His anime hair was completely shaved. His skin was covered in glowing incantation of scriptures that was burned into his flesh. He dragged a massive cross behind him.

[Target: Kenji (Reborn)]

[Class: Martyr]

[Level: 1 (Reset)]

[Buff: Suffering Stacks (x500).]

"Repent!" Kenji shouted crazily. His voice was cracked and raw. "Pain is salvation!"

A sand worm burst from the dunes. It was a Level 30 monster. It swallowed Kenji whole. CRUNCH. The army didn’t stop. They didn’t even bother to help. Inside the worm, a golden light detonated from inside.

BOOM.

The worm exploded like a balloon. Kenji walked out from the gore. He was missing an arm.

[Trait Activation: Martyrdom.]

[Resurrection Complete.]

[Stats Doubled.]

His arm regrew in seconds. His muscles swelled. "Thank you for the pain!" Kenji chuckled crazily.

————————————————————

[Location: HMS Profit Margin - War Room]

We watched the feed on the main screen.

"He’s crazy," Sylvia muttered. "He’s literally feeding himself to monsters to grind his stats."

"It’s an abuse," I said while analyzing the data. "The Martyr System rewards damage. The Church turned him into a biological weapon that scales with exploitation. If we hit him, he gets stronger. If we kill him, he comes back stronger."

"So he’s literally invincible?" Ahri depressed, ears were drooping.

"No. He has a cap. He burns Life Force to resurrect. He has maybe... A hundred lives? Two hundred? Who knows. Even cats have only nine lives. If we just have to spawn-spam him, he’ll be insane eventually."

I looked at the map.

My Forces:

1. HMS Profit Margin (Flying Superiority).

2. Shadow Sniper Corps (500 Units).

3. Sylvia (Level 60 Dragonkin). 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

4. Glacies (Level 60 Dragon).

5. Mercenary Army (10,000 Units - paid for by Gallywix).

Enemy Forces:

1. The Holy Army (100,000 Units).

2. The Ark (Flying Fortress).

3. Kenji (The Bomb).

4. Grand Inquisitor (Level 70 Boss).

"We are outnumbered 10 to 1," Seraphina noted. "They have God’s favor on their side."

"We have High Ground," I countered her back.

"Sparky. What’s the status of the Orbital Mirror?"

"The what?" Sylvia dumbfounded.

"The satellite I hacked. I adjusted its angle."

"Why?"

"Magnifying glass," I grinned evilly. "It will be ready in an hour. Until then, we hold the line patiently."

I stood up menacingly. "Deploy the ground forces. Gallywix, tell your mercenaries to dig in at the Dune. Sylvia, you have the whole air support. It’s time to use the Wyverns service. Seraphina... you have the hardest job."

"What is it?"

"You’re going to talk to Kenji."

"Talk to him? He’s a crazy freak!"

"Yeah. He thinks he’s the Hero and you’re a prisoner."

"Lure him out. Make him bite more than he can chew."

"And then?"

I patted dearly on the Soul-Eater’s Fang. "I introduce him to the concept of Permanent Death."

————————————————————

[The Battlefield]

The armies confronted. It was chaotic. My mercenaries fired mana-rifles. Meanwhile, the Paladins raised shields of light.

PEW. PEW. CLANG.

The rifles were effective. Paladin armor was designed for swords, not high-velocity mana rounds. They were stupid. The front line of the Church was easily crumbled.

But then came the Hero Kenji. He didn’t dodge bullets but he caught them with his face. SPLAT. His head exploded like a balloon. [Resurrection.] He stood back up slowly. "More!" Kenji roared merrily. He swung his iron cross.

SMASH.

Ten mercenaries were crushed into meat paste.

"He’s breaking the order!" Gallywix screamed maniacally over the radio. "We can’t stop him!"

"Seraphina, go!" I ordered.

Seraphina stood on the deck of the airship. She cast [Amplify Voice]. "Kenji!" she shouted loudly.

Kenji paused, then looked up. He saw the Saintess. "Seraphina-chan!" Kenji wept tears of blood. "You’re alive! Don’t worry! I’ll save you from the Demon Lord Cain!"

"Come to me, Kenji! I’m on the ship!"

Kenji kneeled. [Skill: Leap of Faith.] He leaped. He soared 500 feet into the air. He landed on the deck of the Profit Margin. He stood there, panting, covered in absolute gore. "I’m here, Seraphina! Let’s run away from the Demon Lord together!"

Seraphina looked at him with pity and pathetically.

"I’m not running, Kenji. I’m your bait."

[Skill: Shadow Step.] I appeared behind him. "Welcome aboard," I whispered. I didn’t stab him. Instead, I slapped a Slave Collar on his neck.

[Item: Slave Collar (Modified).]

[Effect: Seals Mana. Prevents Skill Activation.]

Kenji grabbed the Slave Collar at his neck. "What is this?! My powers!"

"The Martyr System relies on Mana to trigger the resurrection," I explained beautifully. "No Mana. No Respawn."

I kicked him hard.

He fell. He didn’t bounce back up, just bled.

"You... you bastard!" Kenji coughed.

I dragged him forcefully to the edge of the ship. "Look down, Kenji." Below, the Holy Army was still advancing.

"Sparky! Is the Mirror ready yet?"

"Ready, Boss! Target locked in perfection!"

I pointed at the Ark of Sanctity. "Fire now." High in orbit, a satellite adjusted its mirrors. It focused the full power of the sunlight into a single beam. [Orbital Strike: Solar Lance.] A pillar of pure heat descended from the sky. It hit the flying cathedral. VWOOM. There was no detonation. The Ark just melted, the stone turned to lava and the Paladins inside vaporized instantly.

The Holy Army stopped momentarily. They looked at their burning god-ship dreadfully.

"Now," I lifted Kenji up by his collar forcefully. "Wave goodbye to your admirers." I threw him off the ship. He fell while screaming without his powers. He finally hit the sand. CRUNCH.

[System Notification]

[Enemy Unit ’Kenji’ Neutralized.]

[Status: Coma.]

(Note: Not dead. Plot Armor prevented death at 1HP).

"Tough cockroach," I whispered.

I turned to the crew. "The enemy morale is broken. The Ark is destroyed. Sylvia. Glacies. Clean up the rest. We have a war to win."